By Mafara L. Spurlock         

Coalition for Nonprofit Housing & Economic Development

This is Part II in a series of Nonprofit Neighborhood Building Blocks articles

Georgia Avenue Commercial District Gets Facelift
Local business reaps benefits

A year ago the building at 7348 Georgia Ave., NW had very little curb appeal. With no awning, aberrantly low windows and an average store front appearance, American Security & Communications didn’t really stand out. Today, the retail business looks fabulous, as do several other businesses along this upper Georgia Avenue strip.

The recent store front facelifts of businesses on the block is due in part to the exemplary efforts of Gateway-Georgia Avenue Revitalization Corporation (GGARC), a member of the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing & Economic Development (CNHED). GGARC is a community development corporation spearheading revitalization along the Georgia Avenue corridor.

According to GGARC Executive Director Marc Loud, “Some of the strongest demographics in the city of Washington provide the potential for a vibrant neighborhood business district along Georgia Avenue. Revitalization is the key to tapping into this bustling commercial strip that serves a multitude of diverse neighborhoods along its five-mile route to the District line.”

As for American Security & Communications, it has been around for about 20 years. Originally located in Silver Spring, owners Lamar and Sandra Cox relocated the business to the District in 1991.

“We live in the city, and wanted to be part of the revitalization going on in the District,” said Lamar Cox. “We absolutely love this location, it’s in a great area and it even has parking in the back- it just doesn’t get any better than that!”

GGARC contacted the couple last year and invited them to participate in the Georgia Avenue Storefront Improvement Program and they readily agreed.

“We targeted this block because of its great architectural dignity,” said Loud, “and also because it’s projected to serve as the heart of a neighborhood business district on the lower commercial node of the Gateway service area.”

GGARC’s Georgia Avenue Storefront Improvement Program is provided in cooperation with the District of Columbia Planning Department and the Department of Housing and Community Development. GGARC is contracted to provide major façade upgrades for forty properties along upper Georgia Avenue. The first phase has included all seventeen storefronts on the east side of the 7300 block of Georgia Avenue. The buildings include:

El Tamarindo Restaurant

Pure Bliss ( to open October 1)

Bradby Electric

DiCarlo Upholstery

Discount Auto
Washington Humane Society

Divine Kitchen

Charlie’s Bar and Grill
Bryan Joseph Salon

Command Labor

Dodson Long & Foster

Cater First

Silver Sands Jamaican Restaurant

Geranium Market
Rex Cleaners

Tito Contractors
Scott and Yallery-Arthur Attorneys At Law.

“There’s definitely been a change in our walk-in traffic,” said Cox. “In fact, we’ve gotten more walk up customers and more phone calls from passers by than ever before.” Cox attributes this to the new visibility of his alarm company, which sells the latest security systems for homes and businesses.

In addition to their participation in the Georgia Avenue Storefront Improvement Program, Lamar and Sandra Cox are also active in the Georgia Avenue Main Street’s Clean Team initiative.

“We promote and solicit volunteers to uphold storefront cleanliness along the Georgia Avenue corridor,” said Sandra Cox.  “This is another way we contribute to the revitalization of the city,” she added.

GGARC has also improved other Georgia Avenue storefronts in addition to those on the 7300 block. These include: the Business Resource Center at 7408 Georgia Ave., Dixon Pest Control at 7410, D&T Custom Tailoring at 7712, a vacant building at 7714 and Shepherd Park Barber Shop at 7716. In addition, GGARC has provided architectural plans for 7414, which the owner used to upgrade at his expense. And finally, Gateway has an architect under contract to provide storefront improvement plans for 7816, 7818, 7628 and 7700 Georgia Ave.

For more information about the Georgia Avenue Storefront Improvement Program or other GGARC projects, you can visit them at www.gatewaycdc.com.

Mafara Spurlock is the communications officer for the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development.

TEXT BOX

The Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development’s Neighborhood Building Blocks series focuses on the unique work District nonprofits do to revitalize neighborhoods and produce affordable housing.  The contributions these nonprofits make – such as Improve Storefronts – are the building blocks that form the foundation for thriving neighborhoods and a healthy city.